Locking ring for charm bracelets and the like



Feb. 18, 1969 G. MUSILLO LOCKING RING FOR CHARM BRACELETS AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 30, 1965 Sheet Feb. 18, 1969 R. s. MUSILLO LOCKING RING FOR CHARM BRACELETS AND THE LIK Sheet i of 2 Filed Aug. 30, 1965 INVENTOR. 6. Maw; L o

Pose/er" JEFFERS a- Vou/ve Arrow/5&3

United States Patent 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention is a locking ring used for attaching charms to a bracelet to make up an article of jewelry. The locking ring has complementary ends which are brought together and are mechanically interlocked with a portion of the lock being covered by a bendable section which surrounds and protects the mechanical interlock against accidental opening.

This invention relates to a locking ring, and more particularly to a locking ring which is used as part of an article of jewelry to provide a clasp for securing portions of the jewelry together.

This application is a continuation-in-part application of a previously filed application, Ser. No. 440,252, filed Mar. 16, 1965, now abandoned, entitled, Locking Ring.

It is a common practice in attaching parts in articles of jewelry to use a jump ring which is comprised of a circularly bent wire having the ends in butted relation, or in overlapped relation, the wire ring having been passed through hooks, links or eyelets of the pieces which are to be held together. Owing to the relatively slight cross section of the locking rings, there is lacking inherent strength in the ring, and, therefore, the ends tend to separate so that the connection is broken and the article tends to fall apart. In some articles of jewelry, as for example, bracelets with a number of charms which are attached around the circumference of the bracelet, a whole series of jump rings are required, and it is quite common for these individual charms to be lost because of detachment from the bracelet when the jump rings are bent open or otherwise distorted.

It is one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide a locking ring which quickly and securely fastens parts of jewelry together and has ends which, once joined, are locked permanently together to provide greater security against accidental opening and loss of the jewelry parts.

It is a common practice in the jewelry arts to secure charms and other articles to a bracelet, necklace, or other item, by soldering the ends of the jump ring which retains the charm. In this practice, the one end of a jump ring is passed through the bracelet, and the eyelet of the charm and both ends are then soldered or welded together in some suitable manner to close the jump ring into a closed lock or ring. In this way, the ring permanently secures the charm in place.

The necessary welding equipment for performing these operations is not always readily available, however, and, therefore, jewelers are forced by necessity to send the charm and bracelet to a dealer who is specialized in performing such welding operations. This means that the jeweler must ship the article out of his shop and out of his possession.

It is one of the principal features of the present invention to provide a mechanical fixing of the ends of the jewelry ring to secure the two ends of the ring together so that they are mechanically attached with as much reliability and security as a soldered or welded jump ring.

Instead of shipping the parts out to have the work performed, a jeweler can mechanically perform the same operation of securely joining the ends of the jump ring, and this can be done without special tools. Consequently, lacing operations can be performed which yield the same degree of reliability as previously accomplished by the more expensive and more time-consuming operations. The greater convenience, speed and economy are all important features of the present invention.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a readily constructed article of jewelry in which the ends of the locking ring may be quickly brought together and permanently secured 'with substantially little effort.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a locking ring having ends which can be permanently secured together by mechanical means and which are held together with sufficient security so it will effectively resist any accidental opening while at the same time providing an article of suitable appearance.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a locking ring in an article of jewelry, which forms a locking connection between the ends of the ring, and does not require any separate locking component. In still other embodiments of the invention, however, locking means of the ends of the locking ring can include a separate element if it is so desired.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 illustrates a bracelet and charm which is secured to the bracelet by a locking ring;

FIGURE 2 is an isometric view of a locking ring made in accordance with the present invention and before it is locked;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the locking ends of the locking ring in FIGURE 2 just before the ends are fastened together;

FIGURE 4 is an isometric view of the ends of the locking ring shown in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 illustrates the locking ring after the ends are permanently secured together;

FIGURE 6 is an isometric view showing the connector ends of a further embodiment of the present invention;

FIGURE 7 is an isometric view of a still further object of the present invention, shown slightly modified from that of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 illustrates a locking ring in which the ring is made up of two halves, the one pair of adjacent ends being rigidly secured together and the other pair of ends, illustrated in sectional view, incorporating a ball-and-socket connection which provides for articulated movement of the ring;

FIGURE 9 is a further embodiment of the present invention illustrating how the connected ends of the locking ring can be doweled together;

FIGURE 10 is an isometric exploded view showing how the connected ends of the locking ring can be joined through a separate element; and,

FIGURE 11 is a still further embodiment of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, the bracelet 12 which is made up of a number of interconnected links fitting around the wrist or ankle of the user has a plurality of spaced charms 16 which are fastened at spaced points around the periphery of the bracelet 12 by means of locking ring 18, there being a locking ring for each charm 16 serving as an attachment to the bracelet 12.

The locking ring 18 has ends 20, 22 (FIGURES 2, 3 and 4), one of which is passed through a link 25 of the bracelet 12 and eyelet 26 of the charm 16, and the ends 20, 22 are then secured together. The connector end 20 includes an L-shaped projection 24 which is fitted into a companion socket 26 formed within the end 22 so that after the projection 24 is fitted into socket 26 and the sides of the projection 24 are received within recesses 27. The portion 28 of connector end 22 is then caused to bend around the shank 32 of projection 24, and the two ends 20, 22 are thus permanently secured together (FIGURE When the two parts are thus held together, the edges 34 and 36 of the ends 20, 22 meet together, and the cross section of portion 28 substantially fills the notch portion 29 of the L-shaped projection 24. The projection 24 substantially fills the socket 28, and the bendable portion 28 in turn substantially fills the notch 29 so that the two connected ends once having been fastened together substantially form a continuation of the cross section of the locking ring 18.

The two ends 20, 22 are connected easily together by first passing either end or connector end 22 through the eyelet 26 and link 24 and forcing the two ends 20 and 22 into alignment, The connector end 22 is then forced into the socket 28 causing it to seat within recess 26, and the portion 29 is then bent around the shank 32. The whole operation takes place very quickly and can be manually performed. No welding is required to fasten the two parts together which are permanently and reliably secured, insuring that the charm 16 cannot be readily detached by accidental opening of the ends of the lock ring and causing the charm to become lost.

Referring next to the embodiment of FIGURE 6, it will be seen that the ends of the ring can be varied; in place of the L-shaped boss, a cylindrical boss 42 is formed on the end 44 of the locking ring and is proportioned to fit within a recess 46 of end 48 with the face 50 in engagement with face 52. An annular shoulder 56 is received within reduced diameter groove 58 of end 44 so that annular face 60 of boss 42 lockingly engages annular face 62 of shoulder 56. After the parts are locked together in the manner described, a portion 64 integral in construction with end 48 is formed over the outer surface of the boss 42, permanently locking it within the socket 46 and preventing the two ends 44 and 48 from parting.

Instead of having the portion 64 fold over the boss 42, it can be arranged to fold into the recess 58 as shown in the embodiment of FIGURE 7. In this embodiment, the boss 66 is received within socket 68 and portion 70 is then bent around to enter annular recess 58, thereby permanently locking the boss 66 within the socket 68 and with the face 71 in engagement with the face 73.

Referring next to FIGURE 8, the connecting ring can be made in two halves and the ends 20 and 22 permanently and rigidly connected together, but the opposite pair of ends are joined by a ball 75 and socket 71, i.e., an articulated connection which permits the pair of ends to flex slightly.

In still a further embodiment of the present invention, the end 20 (FIGURE 9) is equipped with a boss 78 of semicircular cross section and having a dowel pin 80 which passes into dowel pin opening 82 of end 22. The end 22 has a semicircular recess 84 which receives the boss 78, and as the dowel pin 80 enters the opening 82, the face 86 is brought into flat face contact with face 88. The curvature of the outer surface of the boss 78 is enough less than the diameter of end 22 that the portion 90 can pass over and overlie the curved outer surface of the boss 78 and substantially fill the space 92.

Referring next to the embodiment shown in FIGURE 10, ends 20, 22 are the same as end 20 in FIGURE 6. The two ends are joined together by means of a connecting member 99 having recess sockets 98 and 100 which are adapted to receive the cylindrical bosses 42.

Portions 101, 102 and 104 are then formed into the annular recesses 58 so that the ends 20, 22 are joined firmly together through the connecting element 99. The portion 108 is then formed circumferentially to close the interior of the member 99. The ends 20, 22 of the connecting ring are fixed rigidly together and cannot pull apart, being permanently secured through the member 99. The two faces 50 of bosses 42 are held in confronting relation and are separated by the width of the portion 108.

In this embodiment as in the others, the joining operation can be performed manually, and the resulting article is strong and will not readily separate under tension and is adapted to hold the charm 16 or other article with substantial security.

Each of the described locking means is of lightweight construction and, in the finished configuration, blends well into the locking ring as a whole so that it is not obtrusive and does not form a catch or snag on the wearing apparel or skin. The article is a substantial improvement over locking rings which merely abut at the ends thereof or overlap and are prone to open to cause loss of jewelery.

The invention as described is characterized in the high degree of reliability and security with which the items of jewelry are linked together.

Referring next to the embodiment of FIGURE 11, the two sections 112 and 114 of the jump ring are pivoted together by a pivot pin 116 and have semicircular serrated ends 118 and 120 and are forced together so that the serrations interlock when the ends 118, 120 are brought together causing the respective ends to enter notched sections 122 and respectively. After the serrated sections are brought together, the formable portion 124 is wrapped over the interlocked serrated sections, preventing them from accidentally coming apart.

Because this mechanical connection is both easily manufactured and easily snapped together, it is an economical construction and one which is readily made and without requiring special tools in the manufacture or assembly of the jump ring or its subsequent closure. The connection is also as efficient and reliable as those previously described and has the substantial advantage that it can be readily effected.

The connection is an easy one to make, being a matter simply of pressing the serrated ends together about the pivot connection 116 and then pressing the formable portion 124 circumferentially around the connection to maintain the two ends in locked relation. Once these ends 118 and 120 are joined together, the jump ring is rigidly joined and the ends cannot pull apart being permanently secured. The joining operation as described can be performed entirely manually, and the resulting construction is strong and provides a holding of the charm onto the bracelet without loss and with substantial security. The locking is a lightweight construction, and it blends well into the overall construction so as not to be too obvious and the resulting connection will not form a catch or snag on wearing apparel.

An important advantage of this embodiment is that it is relatively easy to fabricate the jump ring, and once it is secured to the bracelet, it holds the charm or other jewelry article with a considerable degree of security, no special tools being required to effect the lock.

Although the present invention has been illustrated and described in connection with a few selected example embodiments, it will be understood that these are illustrative of the invention and they are by no means restrictive thereof. It is reasonably to be expected that those skilled in this art can make numerous revisions and adaptations of the invention, and it is intended that such revisions and adaptations will be included within the scope of the following claims as equivalents of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination with a bracelet and charm having a mounting ring, a jewelry lock connection between the bracelet and charm comprising: a link adapted to pass through said bracelet and mounting ring to secure the said charm and bracelet together, a first connector end of said link including a male locking element at the end thereof and a recess forming a shank in said locking element and a mating second connector end proportioned to receive said male locking element therein, said male locking element being constructed with a projection extending transversely of said link, a mating female socket in said second mating connecting end complementary with said projection, and bendable tab clasping means integral with said second mating connector and adapted to be formed over said shank to permanently secure the ends of said link through its male and female locking elements, said clamping means being adapted to coact with said shank and composed of soft metal material which is deformed to overlie said shank and ensure the male-and-female connection.

2. The combination of claim 1, wherein said bendable clamping means is wrapped over the recess of said first connector to retain the male and female connection permanently together and retain the ends of said ring in closed relation.

3. The combination of claim 1, wherein said transverse projection is in the form of a dowel, said mating female socket including a recess for receiving said dowel.

4. The combination of claim 1, wherein said two connector ends are permanently clasped together to comprise complementary tenon-and-socket connections, and a combination ball-and-socket located 180 from said two connector ends to provide an articulated connection of said ring.

5. In an article of jewelry, a jump ring in accordance with claim 1, wherein said two connecting ends each have a semicircular portion, an articulation with said jump ring spaced from said ends whereby said ends may be brought together and moved apart, complementary serrations constituting said connecting ends which are adapted to be brought together in interlocking relation to form a closed loop.

6. The combination of claim 5, wherein said articulation joins two semicircular ring portions forming said jump ring.

7. The combination of claim 1 wherein an articulation within said jump ring is spaced from said ends whereby said ends may be brought together and moved apart.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 692,584 2/1902 Adams et al.

706,322 8/1902 Kellogg.

838,976 12/1906 George 59-85 XR 1,262,179 4/1918 Daniel 59-90 XR 1,449,092 3/ 1923 Evans.

FOREIGN PATENTS 493,234 5/ 1950 Belgium.

LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner. SETH NATTER, Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 59-85, 89 

